“Comments Disabled”

On “Comments Disabled,” the Ithaca, N.Y. rapper and producer Sammus addresses several modern dilemmas. Over the lurch of an ominous beat, she expounds upon the virtues of logging off and decries internet trolls “way too fond of inventing facts.” “They leave rape threats in your mentions/They get big ups from they henchmen,” she raps with a bold, muscled flow, “When you kick ‘em out they make new accounts/That are fake like some extensions.”

Sammus, who is also a Ph.D student at Cornell and video game enthusiast, was moved to write the lyrics after the misogynist 2014 Gamergate controversy. “Women I was following on Twitter were sharing their experiences with harassment,” she told Bandcamp. “The stories these women shared made me physically ill. I saw how widespread the issue is.”

Shutting down faceless haters on the wry, sing-song chorus, she evokes No Doubt’s “Spiderwebs” but inverts its logic; you can leave her a message, but she most assuredly will not be responding. Sammus is too wise for that, and offers this fire instead: “I’m sorry your life isn’t working out/But I promise that typing a hurtful thought/Will not solve any plight you’re concerned about.”